Finding parking spots has been a major issue for University students for years on end, and so far the University has done nothing to fix that issue, despite the high charge on parking permits for students.

Many students who attend the University and use motor vehicles have to pay an annual or semester-long parking permit fee on their fee bill to park on campus. One would think that after spending $165 for an annual parking permit or $80 for a semester-long parking permit, they would have a guaranteed spot to park in. Unfortunately, that’s not the case.

Many a time I have heard the typical story of fellow students fighting for the last parking spot after they dared to leave to go to work or the grocery store. If you approach any student who has lived at the University for even a semester, they can tell you of their unfortunate parking ventures.

I had one friend, who slept past their alarm at 5 a.m., and didn’t get up early enough to move their car from the only parking space that was available for them at the time and had their car towed. How many people do you know have had their cars towed or ticketed because they parked in the only spot available, but it happened to be out of their parking zone at certain times of the day?

It’s not uncommon for students to receive tickets for parking on the grass or in spots in different zones that are supposed to be unavailable for students. It’s also not uncommon for students to have to battle for a spot in a parking lot about a mile away from where they have to be.  For commuters it’s a nightmare to find a good parking spot for classes unless they get up at the crack of dawn to battle the early morning traffic and fellow commuters.

These issues can be attributed to the building of new dorms across campus instead of parking lots. It’s understandable that the University wants more students to live in the campus community instead of living in off-campus apartments or houses, but that’s not realistic. Meal plans and on-campus living can be expensive for the average student, so it’s not a surprise that after freshman year students opt for other options.

The University needs to try to understand their students and listen to what we want, which is that we would prefer parking lots to the new dorms that are taking up a vast amount of space for potential parking lots.

After spending a large amount of money for a parking permit, it seems unfair to not be able to find a decent parking spot without getting towed, ticketed or playing chicken with another student who is just trying to find a spot to go to class. It’s about time people in higher positions at the University wake up to the dilemma at hand, because this isn’t something that’s new or small.  Let’s just hope that for the fall or spring semester, someone will use the money from our high parking fees to use and make extra parking spaces that are very much needed.

Abigail Varnado is a 21-year-old English senior from Amite, Louisiana.